Blobfish declared world's ugliest animal

By Karla Cripps and Chuck Thompson, CNN

Updated 0501 GMT (1201 HKT) September 13, 2013

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The world's ugliest animal? The blobfish – The Ugly Animal Preservation Society named the blobfish as its mascot after a global online vote in 2013. The gelatinous fish lives at depths of up to 1,200 meters off the coast of Australia where it feeds on crabs and lobsters. It's under threat as it often gets caught up in fishing nets... but you wouldn't want to eat it.

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Kakapo – On the right you'll notice a somewhat ugly bird named the kakapo, a critically endangered parrot. It's the only flightless parrot in the world and has very muscular thighs, according to the British Science Association. On the left is former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark.

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Proboscis monkey – The blobfish also had stiff competition for the title of world's ugliest animal from the likes of the proboscis monkey, a big-schnozzed primate that avoids mirrors on the Southeast Asian island of Borneo.

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Warthog – Found throughout sub-Saharan Africa, the warthog is like a weird assemblage of other animals' parts. Surely only its own mother could love it ... but even then.

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California condor – North America's largest land bird is likely to get by on brains, rather than looks.

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Komodo dragon – This living dinosaur native to the Indonesian island of Komodo and others actually drools slime. And its bite is venomous. Don't keep as a pet.

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Aye aye – Despite its name, implying -- in English, anyway -- some sort of affirmation, this teeny Madagascan primate looks like something left behind in a horror movie prop department and mysteriously brought to life.

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Elephant seal – Found lounging hugely on beaches worldwide, the elephant seal looks like someone big, ugly and violent you wouldn't want to encounter in a pub. Curiously enough, those three words also nicely sum up the animal's striking sexual encounter.

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Monkfish – The monkfish. Hangs out in: the Atlantic. Lacks: aesthetic charm. What more to be said?

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Three-toed sloth – Draping itself around Central and South America, the three-toed sloth has a face that looks as if it was put together by a negligent depressive.

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Story highlights

Blobfish named official mascot of Ugly Animal Preservation Society

Proboscis monkey, pig-nosed turtle mount challenge, but no ugliness could equal the blob

Ugly Animal Preservation Society is brainchild of Simon Watt, British biologist and television personality

With the grandiloquence befitting such an occasion, Simon Watt, the British biologist, television personality and "president for life" of the Ugly Animal Preservation Society, made the long-anticipated announcement Thursday night.

"The votes have been counted and verified," said Watt. "The mascot for the Ugly Animal Preservation Society is ... the blobfish!"

They're not very big either, growing only to about 12 inches in length.

NOAA says nobody has ever seen them eat, but the British Science Association says they feast on crabs and lobsters.

Blobfish are found mainly off the coast of southeastern Australia and Tasmania. Like many of the world's ugliest fish, they prefer to lay low, usually at depths of 2,000 to 4,000 feet (600 to 1,200 meters), bobbing around above the bottom of the ocean.

Which is a shame, really.

This cross between the cartoon character Ziggy and an anemic lump of jelly deserves to be seen by the masses.

Led by Watt, the group of like-minded comedians spent the summer fishing around for public nominations as part of its pursuit to name the world's ugliest animal.

With the help of the British National Science and Engineering Competition, Watt put together a YouTube page on which ugly animal fans could watch 11 comedians plead their cases for 11 ugly but endangered animals.

In the end, the blobfish and its champion, Paul Foot, came out on top.

Other contenders included the proboscis monkey, a primate with an obscene schnoz; the flightless dung beetle; and the unfortunate pig-nosed turtle.